Of Cockroaches and NDRS

just got home. well... not quite just. had a shower. and guess what? there was a freaking cockroach in the toilet! all the while as i showered! in fact, just now, as i saw many cockroaches at the void deck... they came out cos people left food on the side of the road (as offerings for the Seventh Moon thing). those cockroaches, i could ignore. but not in my toilet! not when i am showering! it was so gross... i guess all the more because, in the light, in the close proximity, i could see that monstrosity quite clearly. and the more i looked at it, the greater my revulsion. which got me thinking... why are we repulsed by cockroaches so much? would a baby be as repulsed? or perhaps it is the 'gut' feeling that we build up as we grow up, which may or may not be irrational. or it might seem irrational, but could have been developed subconsciously from some rational basis.

which is just like how people react to many things... i had tea with a friend of mine. we talked about the fare hikes. she was completely rational about it. and when she rationalises the fare hikes, it does make sense and sound reasonable. however, people, with their gut feel, don't see it that way. perhaps it is a principle issue rather than a policy debate, that public transport should be a public good and hence the service provider(s) should not return a profit. and that all profit made should be pumped back to improving the service and building future capacity. however, unfortunately, policies are not made by the gut, but through cold, clinical calculations, by a group of people who might not really understand the mindset of a significant proportion of Singaporeans, hence leading to a disconnect between the policy makers and 'man on the street'.

which is what i felt about the National Day Rally Speech. at the end of it, i wonder whether there was actually any meat in it, whether i twas successful in casting a clear bird's eye view of how policies in Singapore would shape up to tackle the big issues on our horizon while still connecting with the 'common man on the street', with, particularly, the heartlanders (who still form the majority of Singaporeans, who are also the most disaffected group). i didn't think the National Day Rally Speech achieved any of those. and i was disappointed.

it was an entertaining speech, but it dealt with rather, in my opinions, trite and obvious points. it didn't quite managed to paint the big picture to show the general direction of our nation's development. but more importantly, i felt that it failed to inspire.

well... i got to go pee... i hope that stupid cockroach ain't there waiting to ambush me...